Freedom for All

This week I'll be using the RainShadow Tarot, created and self-published by Claire Mack. I'll also be using the Liminal Spirits Oracle, created by Laura Tempest Zakroff and published by Llewellyn. Today's draws are Justice and Walnut:

I don’t believe you can stand for freedom for one group of people and deny it to others.

―Coretta Scott King

Anthropologist Ruth Benedict wrote that the purpose of her field was "to make the world safe for human differences." Benedict challenged exceptionalism, the view that a certain group was superior to another. She also promoted cultural relativism, the belief that one culture should not be evaluated using the norms and values of another. Justice involves restoring balance and fairness; rather than punishing differences, we can celebrate them. Walnut is a symbol of discernment as well as protection. It's leaves and hulls contain juglone, which is a natural herbicide that prevents the competition of other trees rooting beneath it. Walnut's message is to see beyond our bias, which shrinks our world rather than protects us. Then perhaps we can embrace the vision of Michelle Obama: "Let's invite one another in. Maybe then we can begin to fear less, to make fewer wrong assumptions, to let go of the biases and stereotypes that unnecessarily divide us. Maybe we can better embrace the ways we are the same."